Loving Tessa (January Cove) (5 page)

“I am very lonely, but not because of the camper. I feel free in that camper, actually. Not safe, but free.”

“I don’t understand…”

“You’ve probably never been lonely a day in your life, Aaron. You have a great, big, happy family that loves you. Be thankful for that.”

“I am very thankful for that, but it doesn’t mean I haven’t been lonely or betrayed before. In fact, it just happened to me.”

“Oh?”
 

“Yes. Tell ya what. I’ll share something with you that is very personal to me. I dated a woman for years, got engaged and then found her in bed with another man. Since then, I’ve been angry and lonely no matter who is around me. My family is worried about me, and my employees steer clear if they can.”

“Really? You seem so calm and put together.”

“Well, you’ve only seen the superhero side of me,” he said with a wink.

“I like the superhero. Made me feel safe for a moment in time,” she said standing up and looking at the pictures of his family lining the wall. “This is what I wanted for Tyler,” she said pointing to a photo of Adele and all of her kids when they were younger.

“What?”

“I wanted a big family. I wanted vacations and front yard football games and picnics on the beach. But I didn’t get that, and Tyler got a raw deal.” Aaron was quiet while she talked. “It’s funny how you have all these plans in life. You think you’re going to conquer the world, become someone important…”

“You are someone important, Tessa,” Aaron said standing up behind her.

“What?” she said turning around.

“You are the center of his universe.” Aaron pointed at Tyler sleeping peacefully.

She paused and smiled. “I know, but I’ve let him down. You have no idea.”

“It happens, Tessa.”

“What does?”

“Life. Things happen. Kids are resilient. Whatever happened, it looks like you’re trying to make it right. Make it better for Tyler.”

“I am,” she said as she sat back down on the sofa. “Wow, it’s after one in the morning. This is going to be a long night.”

“I’m wide awake. Why don’t you lie down for awhile? You can sleep right here, and I’ll keep watch.”

“I don’t know…”

Aaron stood up. “Here.” He handed her his wallet and his keys.

“What’s this for?” she asked laughing.

“You can sit on it or hide it or stick it down your shirt…”

“And why would I want to do that?”

“To prove to you that I won’t leave. Those are my only set of keys, that is my wallet and my mother’s business card is in there. Adele Parker would kill me herself if she thought I’d kidnapped a child. I promise, he’ll be fine. I’ll set my phone to remind me to rouse him every hour on the dot.”

Her face softened as she realized he was seriously trying to help her. She took the keys and wallet and slid them between her hip and the arm of the sofa.

“Why are you doing this, Aaron?” she asked.

“Doing what?”

“Being so nice and helpful to me? You don’t even know me. You certainly don’t have any responsibility for me or my son.”

“Because I don’t like bullies, and whoever has hurt you deserves to be beaten to a pulp. Tessa, no one is going to harm a hair on your head as long as I’m around, okay? So sleep. Rest. You need it.” He stood up and retrieved a blanket from the hall closet and draped it across her body.

She looked like she wanted to say something, but instead opted to lie back against the sofa pillow. When she closed her eyes, she fell asleep within minutes. Aaron watched her, seemingly peaceful but probably filled with angst, and wondered how he had gotten himself involved in what could prove to be a dangerous situation. She was obviously running from something, or someone, and he had now put himself smack dab in the middle of it. But, for reasons beyond his comprehension, he wasn’t scared. He was protective, almost fiercely protective, of a woman he’d just met.

***

Tessa woke up around six in the morning, unaware of how long she’d been asleep. The warmth of the blanket wrapped around her made her feel safe for the first time in years, as if she was in a cocoon of protection that couldn’t be infiltrated.

She opened her eyes slowly as she saw just the smallest hint of light through the window blinds. The sun hadn’t risen yet, so she sat up to see what she could in the muddled darkness. What she saw surprised her more than anything she’d ever seen before.

Aaron wasn’t on the sofa with her. He was sitting on the floor beside Tyler, holding his hand while he lay sleeping against the arm of the sofa.

“Aaron?” she whispered as she crouched on the floor beside him. Groggy, he cleared his throat and opened his eyes.

“I’m awake. I’m awake.”

“It’s okay. Tyler looks good from what I can see. And he’s snoring up quite a storm,” she said smiling.

“I must have dozed off. I checked him at five thirty. What time is it?”

“Right at six.”

“Good.”

“Thank you so much for letting me get some rest. It’s been… Well, let’s just say it’s been a very long time since I was able to rest.” She smiled at him before standing up. “You have anything to make for breakfast here?”

“Sure. I’ve got some eggs and bacon. Let me…” he said as he started to stand up.

“No, let me cook it. It’s the least I can do,” she said as she made her way into the kitchen. Aaron followed her. “So, why were you holding Tyler’s hand?” she asked as she took the eggs and bacon from the refrigerator.

“He woke up looking for you around three. He started to cry, so I held his little hand until he fell back to sleep.”

Tessa stopped for a moment, smiled slightly and then broke the first egg over the frying pan.

“What?” he asked leaning against the counter.

“Nothing.”

“No, what?” he pressed with a laugh.

“It’s just that I’m not used to having someone around to take the pressure off during times like this.”

“What about his father?” Aaron asked. Tessa stilled once again, but this time in fear. She knew that her body language was showing far too much about how anxious and terrified she really was, and she wished she could turn that off.

“Can we not talk about this?” she asked as she continued looking down.

“Okay. I’m sorry. It was just…”

“No, I’m sorry, Aaron. I know I’m not the easiest person to get to know.” She turned and looked at him. “It’s not you. I just have to do it this way.”

He looked at her for a moment and then smiled. “Tell ya what. I won’t ask any more personal questions, but you have to promise me that if you want to talk to someone, it will be to me. Deal?”

“Why does it have to be you?” she asked with a giggle.

“Because I know for a fact that you can trust me. The only way I can keep you safe from whatever is scaring you is to make sure I’m the only one you confide in.” His words immediately made her feel better, but also vulnerable.

“Aaron, we’re not your problem. We’re just temporary tenants at your campground. I don’t want you to have to be stressed out about my messed up life, okay?” She wiped her hands on he dish towel and pulled another frying pan from the cabinet next to the stove.

“Tessa, I’m a grown man. I like you and Tyler. You seem like nice people, and I don’t take kindly to bullies. I don’t know what you’re running from, but I believe that you need an ally. Call it intuition. Isn’t it okay for you to have a friend?” he asked. She nodded. “So, do we have a deal?” he asked holding out his hand.

She stared at his hand for a brief moment and then nodded again, shaking his hand. His handshake felt strong and confident, and she wished that she could feel that way. Something inside of her wanted to pull him toward her so she could rest her face against his chest and feel safe for just a few moments.

“So, tell me something. What’s up with that camper you’ve got?” he asked as he pulled up a bar stool.

“What do you mean?”

“It’s a little…”

“Beaten up?” she asked with a sly smile.

“Just a bit.”

“It’s all I could afford at the…” she started before realizing she might say too much.

“Gotcha. Does it have air?”

“No.”

“Tessa! You guys have been living over there without air conditioning all this time?”

“Yes…”

“It’s too hot for that.”

“We’ve been fine, Aaron,” she said rolling her eyes as she flipped the eggs and checked on the bacon sizzling.

“I don’t care. It’s way too hot for you to be over there with Tyler. Y’all barely come out of that thing. How have you managed all this time?”

“When you’ve been through worse, the loss of air conditioning is not a big deal.” Now she’d done it. She was saying too much again.

“What about your dog?”

“Oh crap! Beau! In all the ruckus last night, I forgot to let him out!” she said as she turned off the burners and started for the door.

“Relax. I’ll go let him out. Does he need to be fed?”

“Yes. The food is in the cabinet under the sink. I can do it…”

“No, I don’t mind. Besides, I would end up burning the eggs,” he said with a wink as he quietly walked through the living room and out the front door.

Aaron made his way across the small yard between his cabin and her camper. As he walked inside, he was taken aback by just how old the camper was. It looked like it'd been created sometime in the 1970s with brown shag carpeting and harvest yellow appliances. His stomach sank. What had this beautiful woman and her son holed up in a tiny, old camper for all these weeks? What in the world were they running from?
     Before he had a chance to think much more, the big boxer dog came running from the back of the camper barking at him. He jumped up on Aaron and almost knocked him down.
     "Hey, boy!" he said trying to calm the dog down. Aaron had always loved dogs, but this particular one seemed to be a little bit overzealous with his greetings. He dug the dog food out from under the sink and poured it in a bowl along with some fresh water. Then, he clipped the leash that was lying on the kitchen table onto Beau and walked him outside. Once Beau finished his business, he brought the dog back inside and allowed him to eat for a few minutes.
     Aaron couldn't help himself. He looked around a little bit to try to get an idea about who this Tessa person was. Nothing in the camper said anything about her former life. However, just seeing what she was living in made him cringe. What had she left behind that was worse than this?

The camper was hot inside even though it was still early morning. There was no way he was going to leave the dog locked up in there all day without air conditioning, and he couldn’t imagine how Tessa and Tyler had done it either. He grabbed the dog food bag and Beau’s now empty bowls and started back across the yard, pulling the energetic canine at the same time.

As he walked into the cabin, Tessa was putting their plates on the breakfast table.

“Beau? Aaron, what are you doing?”

“It’s already too hot over there, Tessa. I couldn’t leave him inside that camper.”